My time with you has come to an end. From the Man Pad to the G20; from RadioLab to the baby binary; from the amazing Stu Rasmussen to my (apparently controversial) exploration of transphobia; from interviews with artists to profiles of beautiful tattoos--it's been a fantastic journey. My goal was to look at representations of the body in space, time, and pop culture. I hope you have found our time together as illuminating and exciting as I have.

What to do about Joanna Krupa? Just when it seemed safe to support her on Dancing With the Stars (she and Derek totally ruled Team Tango, after all) she goes and does an interview with Fox News and starts trash-talking feminism.

You see, Krupa (a swimsuit model by trade) will be featured on the cover of next month's Playboy and she doesn't want feminists to say a word about it.

I think they [women who don't support the magazine] suffer from lack of knowledge and tunnel vision. How many of those self-important, so-called 'feminists' have been on the set when a celebrity shot a Playboy spread? There you go. What is feminist about discriminating a photo shoot just because it involves female (partial) nudity that happens to give men pleasure? Pathetic.

Aha. So we're pathetic now, because we don't want to praise her decision to pose for a magazine that trades in objectifying women. And, you know, we "so-called feminists" should just go to the set and see the gender equality for ourselves, because it's not like just a privileged few young, conventionally beautiful, able-bodied, mostly white women are invited to participate. All women could be in Playboy if they weren't so darned uptight, right?

Young, Fat and Fabulous (YFF) is a super-fun fashion blog that caters to fat women. The philosophy behind the blog is that there's no reason why a bigger woman can't be trendy or express herself through fashion, and also that building a community of fat fashion lovers means women can share tips and trends with one another and not feel like the only fat girl in a sea of skinny girls (you know, the girls fashion publications usually target). YFF blogger Gabi describes herself on the blog as, "a fun loving girl who happens to have a flair for fashion. I'm just trying to change the world one fat girl at a time." Yay! Here's an example from a recent YFF post:

Portland's Julie Sabatier, in addition to producing Bitch Media's issue podcasts, has been producing her own stellar podcast, Destination DIY, for three years now, covering everything from self-publishing to DIY funerals to gender identity. Now syndicated on channels across the country, Julie is hosting an event to raise funds for the upcoming episodes.

This Friday in Portland, Julie is hosting a night of communal DIY at the Woods, with live demonstrations of making your own terrariams, bacon, and, of course, your own radio show. Live music will be provided by Leviethan and billygoat, who make incredible stop-motion animation, and guests are invited to bid in a silent auction and hit up the recording room to share their own DIY projects and a chance to hear themselves on the next episode! Portlanders should definitely come out and support independent radio and the DIY legacy in the digital age. (And yes, there will be snacks!)

PDX Salon and Destination DIY present: An Evening of DIY
November 6th, 8-11pm at The Woods
Tickets are $10-20 (sliding scale) and are available in advance.

Girl Fest Hawaii is now in its sixth year of combating violence against women through a week of art, music, and workshops. This year's festival, which runs from this Saturday, Nov 7th until the 14th in Honolulu is going to be just as great as ever! Check out these five (of many) reasons to attend or support Girl Fest Hawaii after the jump!

Sure, there's Rosie, Lady Gaga, and this lovely list of pun-tastic pro-choice outfits for you to choose from, but it still seems like it's hard for feminists to get a break on Halloween! Here are some suggestions from the Bitch Media office....

In yet another entry in my one-person attempt to override the portrayal of women/queers/everyone else in dumb tattoo magazines like "Inked," I present Ana Maria Ventura, a totally awesome San Francisco high school teacher who has many incredible tattoos. The description that follows, in her own words, is in regards to a fantastic piece on her arm and involves Spain, big questions about home, and bats.

Ugh, you know when you've been hired as an editor at Playboy, a job that is only given to the most talented, intelligent, amazing dudes ever, and they make you write the bios for the stupid Playmates? Like, completely wasting your talent and intelligence and amazingness on some brainless woman who's just a "blank slate with cleavage"? John Blumenthal sure does. Oh, what's that? You don't know who John Blumenthal is? Hmm...that's weird, because according to him he's pretty much the greatest thing ever. But according to us, he's the recipient of this week's Douchebag Decree (highest honor, yet, Johnny, I'm sure). Read more about his painstaking minutes talking to those brick walls with boobs after the jump!